Orlando, FL— The Greater Orlando Chapter of the International Facility Management Association is feeling the skilled labor shortage and is doing something about it. The association is actively involved with several initiatives to address this overage of college grads and shortage of skilled labor and making Facilities management a career of choice.

The initiatives include working with Skills USA (formerly Vocational Industrial Clubs of America) to promote the Facility Management professions and related fields to high school students deciding on career paths. The means they do this is not through traditional “career day presentations” but hands- on interactive challenges in the format of a Facilithon which will be taking place in Pensacola, FL April 7-10, 2019 for the statewide competition.

The association is also rolling out an internship/mentoring relationship with local high schools and its association members’ companies to offer internships to high school students. These companies include facility management, HVAC, Roofing, Construction and many other areas.

Finally, the IFMA association also offers scholarships to students currently in college to pursue FM related professions by offering over $100,000 worth of scholarships which include an expense paid trip to the association’s International conference in Phoenix, AZ which offers education and job networking opportunities.

For more information about the Greater Orlando Chapter of IFMA, or to contact a member of the chapter, please visit www.ifmaorlando.org . To learn more about IFMA, visit www.ifma.org.

IFMA is the world’s largest and most widely recognized international association for professional facility managers, supporting more than 19,500 members in 60 countries. The association’s members, represented in 125 chapters and 15 councils worldwide, manage more than 37 billion square feet of property and annually purchase more than US$100 billion in products and services. Formed in 1980, IFMA certifies facility managers, conducts research, provides educational programs, recognizes facility management certificate programs and produces World Workplace, the world’s largest facility management conference and exposition. For more information, visit the IFMA press room or www.ifma.org.